That is the only sensible conclusion to be drawn from the European Commission’s intention to press on with its insistence on scrutinising national governments’ budget plans, including that of Britain.

At last week’s EU summit David Cameron, in his first Brussels outing as the newly-elected Prime Minister, made clear that the UK was not happy at the prospect of having its tax and spending “peer reviewed” by other EU members before it could be put into effect.

But within minutes of the meeting ending, and despite signs that other countries recognised the problem for Britain, the Commission said it would bring forward its proposals just the same, by the end of this month.

While we are all trying to swim through this financial crisis without knowing exactly when and how it will end, the EU bureaucracy immediately looks around to find someone to blame.